Since I have been writing about Malta recently it seems fitting to mention a little more about the number one growth industry on the island (here). The amazing reality is that a very significant proportion of all the bets placed in Europe somehow go through this tiny island.

The legislation is such that it is very (tax) advantageous to be located in Malta when compared to other locations such as the UK, France or Germany.

It is widely believed that 80% of all the main betting firms in the world have some sort of base in Malta. Needless to say, this provides lots of employment for locals and foreigners. It has a huge impact on the economy.

A few days ago I wrote about the destination wedding in Malta of some friends (here).

I have since been chatting to one of the guests and they have been telling me that they liked the island so much that they have made enquiries about buying a property there. This would be a second home for them – somewhere to holiday in for a few more years and then to also possibly retire to in the next decade!

What a lovely idea!

They were telling me that they have found a real estate agent they like (here) and seem to be taking the situation very seriously. I think I might just have a holiday home in Malta soon!

In one of my earlier posts, I mentioned the tiny island of Malta and how some friends had recently returned from there (here).

I did not (still do not) know much about Malta, but their vivid descriptions started me on a path of reading about the island and it’s interesting history.

It also got me wondering how such a tiny place survives in the global economy. That is a fascinating subject!

Malta seems to have specialised in finding ways to offer benefits to the wealthy at the expense of larger governments elsewhere. In this regard they are like a tax haven, with the major difference that the country is an EU member state and is therefore “onshore”.

A great example of the spirit is the recently launched citizenship scheme which enables wealthy families to fast-track their residency and then naturalisation process (in an EU member state) in return for contributions and investments in Malta. It is also described quite well here.

There are other areas like this, but I need to do some more reading and research into those. Still, I am finding the whole process to be very interesting…

We have been chatting recently to a friend that has successfully quit smoking. Obviously there are lots of people that quit smoking each year, what we found to be interesting was that she used a hypnotherapist to help her.

She works quite often in London, so she chose to work with Deborah in her London practice (details here).

She tells us that she only had a few sessions and has felt totally transformed by the experience and seen her desire for a smoke drop to virtually nil. This is impressive stuff since she has been a smoker for more than a decade.

One of our Grimsby couples has just returned from a glorious wedding in the sun. Mike and Sue had what is known as a “destination wedding” in the lovely island paradise of Malta.

Their planner – find her here – arranged a wonderful day and two days of events to prepare the guests for the big day. By all accounts everyone had an amazing time – they certainly sold everyone on the idea of returning to Malta!

There were nearly fifty guests in total, meaning that people stayed in different hotels for their stay, depending upon location and budget. Mike and Sue stayed in a private apartment elsewhere – probably so they they could freak out beforehand in private without an audience

What can I say, but everyone returned with a lovely tan and great stories of the wedding and Malta.

Something that I enjoy to follow is the growing pace of development around the Bitcoin ecosystem. Bitcoin is still inherently confusing to most people, but at the same time, lots of us can understand that crypto currencies offer real opportunities and solutions. It is a brave new world!

With that in mind, I like yesterday’s guest post (here) that explains how the BTC world is changing, partly due to regulations and partly due to being more organised because VCs and real funding is being allocated.

If the whole world of Bitcoin is still confusing to you, you could start here for some easy to digest background info.

The last few days are seeing the return of the English domestic football season. Thank goodness!

Obviously, the World Cup was quite epic in places, but that doesn’t really relate to the lower level of football that the rest of us inhabit.

Not only do I watch more normal games, but I enjoy playing some form of fantasy football through the season as well. Typically I play one or two of the games in the national newspapers, but this year I will also be playing the new weekly online game at Oulala.com. I can’t wait! It is billed as being much more complex than the others and more realistic of a players performance that I think it will be really challenging.